Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX) Sets New 52-Week Low - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• Viking Therapeutics shares hit a new 52-week low, falling to $24.67 and trading about 3.1% lower, well below their 50-day and 200-day moving averages.
• Despite the decline, analysts maintain a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating with an average price target of $98.10, although some firms recently lowered their targets and one reiterated a sell rating.
• The clinical-stage biotech reported a quarterly loss of $1.10 per share, beating estimates, while insiders sold nearly $6.3 million in stock over the past 90 days primarily to cover tax obligations from vested equity awards.

Viking Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week low during trading on Friday. The stock traded as low as $24.67 and last traded at $24.6650, with a volume of 653,357 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $25.83.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on VKTX shares. Oppenheimer set a $120.00 price objective on Viking Therapeutics in a report on Tuesday, September 22nd. Zacks Research raised shares of Viking Therapeutics from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, August 18th. Truist Financial lowered their price objective on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $87.00 to $85.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Viking Therapeutics from $75.00 to $65.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a "sell (d-)" rating on shares of Viking Therapeutics in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating, two have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Viking Therapeutics has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $98.10.

Viking Therapeutics Trading Down 3.1%

The stock's 50-day moving average is $31.56 and its two-hundred day moving average is $32.84. The company has a market capitalization of $3.15 billion, a PE ratio of -5.36 and a beta of 0.66.

Viking Therapeutics (NASDAQ:VKTX - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 29th. The biotechnology company reported ($1.10) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of ($1.21) by $0.11. The business's revenue was up .0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted ($0.58) EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Viking Therapeutics, Inc. will post -4.46 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Viking Therapeutics

In other news, CEO Brian Lian sold 148,517 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.32, for a total transaction of $4,948,586.44. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 2,572,441 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $85,713,734.12. This trade represents a 5.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, COO Marianna Mancini sold 18,217 shares of Viking Therapeutics stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.47, for a total transaction of $609,722.99. Following the sale, the chief operating officer directly owned 422,760 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,149,777.20. This represents a 4.13% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 187,951 shares of company stock worth $6,268,442 in the last 90 days. 5.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Viking Therapeutics

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Inspire Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 13.5% during the third quarter. Inspire Investing LLC now owns 19,229 shares of the biotechnology company's stock valued at $627,000 after buying an additional 2,280 shares during the period. T3 Companies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at $202,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Viking Therapeutics in the 3rd quarter valued at $34,000. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB lifted its stake in shares of Viking Therapeutics by 65.4% during the 3rd quarter. E. Ohman J or Asset Management AB now owns 14,164 shares of the biotechnology company's stock worth $462,000 after purchasing an additional 5,602 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vontobel Holding Ltd. bought a new stake in Viking Therapeutics during the third quarter valued at about $245,000. 76.03% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Viking Therapeutics

Viking Therapeutics, Inc is a clinical-stage biopharmaceutical company headquartered in San Diego, California. Founded in 2012, the company develops therapies for metabolic and endocrine disorders, with a focus on conditions involving obesity, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), and other liver and lipid disorders.

Viking's lead program is VK2735, an investigational dual GLP-1/GIP receptor agonist being developed in injectable and oral formulations for obesity and related metabolic conditions.

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